BASEBALL: Silver Lake juniors help East Coast Eagles fly to new heights

KINGSTON - After playing large roles in the Silver Lake baseball team's ride this spring to the Division 1A Super 8 Tournament, three juniors from that squad spent their summer sharpening their skills on the baseball diamond. Anthony Videtto, Jason Johndrow, and Mike Melanson spent seven weeks of their summer vacation playing tournament baseball for the East Coast Eagles.

Comment

Wicked Local

Writer

Posted Aug. 22, 2014 at 12:01 AM
Updated Aug 22, 2014 at 10:42 AM

Posted Aug. 22, 2014 at 12:01 AM
Updated Aug 22, 2014 at 10:42 AM

» Social News

KINGSTON - After playing large roles in the Silver Lake baseball team's ride this spring to the Division 1A Super 8 Tournament, three juniors from that squad spent their summer sharpening their skills on the baseball diamond. Anthony Videtto, Jason Johndrow, and Mike Melanson spent seven weeks of their summer vacation playing tournament baseball for the East Coast Eagles.

“Most tournaments we play in use wooden bats and we choose to enter our 16 year-olds in the older player divisions,” Head Coach Justin Gordon said. “This team is full of talented baseball players with a chance to succeed at the college level. I could not have asked for a better group of young men to spend my summer coaching”.

Gordon, a native of Taunton, knows what to look for in a budding baseball star. Drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers at age 20, he played five seasons in that organization. He went on to coach at Temple, Northeastern, Western Illinois University, and also did a stint working with the Harwich Mariners of the Cape Cod Baseball League.

He was assisted this summer in the dugout by Josh Porter. Porter played his college ball at Northeastern and also coached at Roger Williams. He is currently coaching at Middleboro High School.

Porter said the tandem of Videtto, Melanson and Johndrow could form "the best high school pitching staff in the state and they’ll only be juniors. It doesn’t matter which of them is pitching against my Middleboro High team next year, we better bring our 'A' game when we go up against Silver Lake."

After a summer of coaching the trio, Gordon came away impressed with what he saw from all three of the returning Lakers.

"Videtto is an intelligent all-around player. He mixes his pitches as well as anyone you will see in high school baseball," Gordon said. "His fastball and breaking ball are well above average for this level. And when not pitching, he's my cleanup hitter and provides the power and approach necessary for that spot in the lineup. He plays center field and ranges well with a tremendous glove and a strong arm. He is one of our iron men, he played every inning of every game this summer."

As for Johndrow, Gordon said the two-time Patriot League All-Star "has a fearless approach on the mound that far exceeds his age. In the winter workouts he was throwing smoke up to the plate at 86-87 mph. At the Bay State Games many of the scouts asked specifically for Jason to take the mound. The scout seats behind the screen were a sea of radar guns, stop watches, and notepads. Johndrow did not disappoint as he was hitting 87 mph consistently with his fastball.

“Jason would pitch every inning of every game if we let him."

Page 2 of 2 - As for Melanson, the second-youngest player on the team, Gordon said he "is like no pitcher you will see at age 16. His mound presence is dominant. Mike has a way of leading his team on and off the field He threw a no-hitter and the eight players behind him were like one unit determined to complete the no-no. It was a fun game.”

Melanson followed up the no-hitter with a complete game two-hit shutout where his fastball hovered around 79-80 mph. As he got to the sixth and seventh innings, he was up around 81-82 mph when he needed it the most.

“Mike got stronger as the game went on," Gordon said. "His effectiveness comes from an ability to locate his pitches while pounding the strike zone. He has a great understanding of the speed difference needed from his fastball to his curve/changeup.

"When we needed a win, Mike was our guy to turn to.”

Along with their own individual success, the trio also enjoys some team success. The Eagles won the Firecracker Tourney, hosted by Bishop Feehan’s Mark Cooke. They ran the table and finished off the best Legion team from New York on the final day to bring home the trophy.

Melanson was the tourney MVP with a crucial save and a complete game, three-hit, semifinal performance over a Legion squad from Albany, N.Y.

The Eagles then traveled to the state of New York to win the Long Island Tournament. They swept all six games they played, each of them in complete-game fashion. Over the six games they let up one run while making just one error. The Silver Lake trio was right in the middle of the fun. Johndrow got the win in a 2-1 gem, Melanson scattered two hits in a 1-0 victory while Videtto was close to un-hittable in spinning a 2-0 shutout in another game.